Find out how popular the last name Josephson is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Josephson.

Josephson, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Josephson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Josephson in America

Josephson is the 9100th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Josephson surname appeared 3,590 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Josephson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Josephson to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Josephson

The surname Josephson is of English origin, derived from the personal name Joseph and the patronymic suffix "-son," meaning "son of Joseph." It emerged during the late Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century, as a way to distinguish individuals by their father's name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Josephson can be found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, which lists a John Josephson from the village of Bradfield. This entry suggests that the name was in use among English families by the late 14th century.

In the 16th century, the Josephson family had established roots in various parts of England, including Lincolnshire and Lancashire. The Visitation of Lincolnshire in 1592 mentions a Robert Josephson, while the Visitation of Lancashire in 1613 records a Thomas Josephson.

Notably, the Josephson name has been associated with several prominent individuals throughout history. One such figure was Sir William Josephson (1591-1671), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Heytesbury in 1628 and later became a judge on the Court of King's Bench.

Another notable bearer of the name was John Josephson (1633-1675), an English mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of comets and planetary motion. His work, "A Treatise Concerning the Motion of Comets," published in 1674, was highly influential in the field of celestial mechanics.

In the literary realm, Edward Josephson (1818-1892) was a renowned English writer and translator. He is best known for his translations of works by Danish authors, including the renowned fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen.

The Josephson name has also been associated with places and geographical locations. For instance, Josephson's Cove in Newfoundland, Canada, was named after an early settler with the surname Josephson who established a fishing outpost in the area.

Throughout its history, the surname Josephson has undergone various spelling variations, such as Josephson, Josephsone, Josephsonn, and Josephsoune, reflecting regional dialects and the evolution of the English language over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Josephson

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Josephson.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Josephson was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Josephson has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Josephson was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Josephson, please contact us.

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